The only human cathelicidin antimicrobial peptide, playing key roles in innate immune defense, wound healing, and modulation of inflammatory responses.
The main function of the eccrine gland has been considered to be thermoregulation. Recently, it has been reported that antimicrobial peptides including cathelicidin and dermcidin exist in the sweat. Lactoferrin is found in body fluids such as milk te…
Viral proteins and nucleic acids stimulate TLRs to elicit production of cytokines, chemokines, and IFNs. Because of their immunostimulatory activity, several TLR agonists are being developed as vaccine adjuvants and cancer immunotherapeutics. However…
BACKGROUND: Protozoan parasites, such as Leishmania, still pose an enormous public health problem in many countries throughout the world. Current measures are outdated and have some associated drug resistance, prompting the search into novel therapie…
A well-known association between vitamin D(3) and infection with Mycobacterium tuberculosis has previously been reported, but little is known regarding the underlying mechanisms. We have investigated how 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D(3) [1,25(OH)(2)D(3)] a…
Bone marrow (BM)-derived fibrocytes are a population of CD45(+) and collagen Type I-expressing cells that migrate to the spleen and to target injured organs, such as skin, lungs, kidneys, and liver. While CD45(+)Col(+) fibrocytes contribute to collag…
The present study examined the bactericidal effects of orexin B (ORXB) and vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) alone or combined with cationic antimicrobial peptides, such as LL-37, on Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Streptococcus mutans an…
The adenomatous polyposis coli (APC) protein is crucial to homeostasis of normal intestinal epithelia because it suppresses the β-catenin/TCF pathway. Consequently, loss or mutation of the APC gene causes colorectal tumors in humans and mice. Here, w…
The ability of the ocular surface to respond to pathogens is in part attributed to toll-like receptors (TLRs) that recognize conserved motifs on various microbes. This study examines TLR expression on various ocular surface cells, if TLR agonists can…
Chemerin, a ligand for the G-protein coupled receptor chemokine-like receptor 1, requires C-terminal proteolytic processing to unleash its chemoattractant activity. Proteolytically processed chemerin selectively attracts specific subsets of immunoreg…
OBJECTIVE: The intact nasal barrier is a prerequisite for a functioning defense of the upper airway system, in particular the permanent threat by inhaled potentially harmful microorganisms. Antimicrobial peptides (AMP) play an important role in maint…
Our understanding of vitamin D metabolism and biological effects has grown exponentially in recent years and it has become clear that vitamin D has extensive immunomodulatory effects. The active vitamin D generating enzyme, 1α-hydroxylase, is express…
The second part of our study deals with a comparative evaluation and discussion of the immunohistochemical results that were obtained. The cryoscanning electron microscopy (cryoSEM) observations confirmed a monolayer colonization of the esophageal su…
OBJECTIVES: Our objectives were to 1) assess cord blood vitamin D concentrations from healthy term newborns, 2) ascertain whether cord blood vitamin D insufficiency precludes optimal induction of the Toll-like receptor (TLR) antimicrobial pathway in…
The pathogenesis of periodontitis involves the interplay of microbiota present in the subgingival plaque and the host responses. Inflammation and destruction of periodontal tissues are considered to result from the response of a susceptible host to a…
OBJECTIVE: Recent studies have showed that genetic factors involved in the host responses might determine the severity of periodontitis. hCAP-18/LL-37 is a part of the innate immune response in the oral cavity. The aim of the present study was to inv…
The objective of this study was to investigate the expression and relationship of LL-37, plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs) and interferon-alpha (IFN-α) in skin in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), and their role in SLE pathogenesis. Skin biopsies…
AIMS: Ceragenin CSA-13 is a synthetic mimic of cationic antibacterial peptides, with facial amphiphilic morphology reproduced using a cholic acid scaffold. Previous data have shown that this molecule displays broad-spectrum antibacterial activity, wh…
BACKGROUND: Epithelial surfaces such as the gastrointestinal mucosa depend on expression of antimicrobial peptides like cathelicidin for immune defence against pathogens. The mechanisms behind mucosal cathelicidin regulation are incompletely understo…
OBJECTIVE: Nasal carriage of Staphylococcus aureus in patients with chronic rhinosinusitis with nasal polyps (NP) is hypothesized to have pathophysiological impact on the disease. Antimicrobial peptides (AMP), especially human beta-defensin-3 (hBD-3)…
BACKGROUND: Human cathelicidin LL-37 is a cationic antimicrobial peptide (AMP) which possesses a variety of activities including the ability to neutralise endotoxin. In this study, we investigated the role of LPS neutralisation in mediating LL-37's a…